


Rules of Nature

by BishieT



Category: Yakitate!! Japan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Changing Perspective, F/M, ask to tag, genderfluid Shigeru Kanmuri, it's like yaki but it's a paranormal romance now, not a/b/o, the term alpha is used but it is not in reference to a/b/o
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:55:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28471989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BishieT/pseuds/BishieT
Summary: Monica Adenauer is the strongest werewolf anybody has seen in a hundred years. After a poor early childhood she now wants for nothing, because the wolves expect her to rule them someday. When two friends she met in college contact her to tell her there is suddenly a worrying amount of shapeshifters working at their bakery chain in Japan, among other things, she jumps at the chance to help.But who cares about that! There's a hot guy here! And they might just be destined to be together, or something. (With a little help.)It's a Freshly-baked Werewolves AU!
Relationships: Monica Adenauer/Suwabara Kai
Comments: 2
Kudos: 1





	1. A Fated Meeting, Maybe

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this and I love it. If you don't I'm sorry you're less cool than me.

“We are expecting a guest,” Kuroyanagi tells him out of the blue one day at work. “She's already been given express permission to come and go as she pleases. I thought I’d make you aware.”

Suwabara slides his eyes in his superior's direction. “Who's ‘we’? The company?” He asks.

Kuroyanagi doesn't bother looking up from his clipboard. “Kanmuri and I.” He clarifies.

 _Some spoiled rich brat they met at Harvard, then._ “Why is some random foreigner of yours being allowed into the back-of-the-house?”

Kuroyanagi swings on him then, and for a moment, Suwabara swears there’s a vicious glow in the man's eyes the likes of which he’s never seen before. His sword hand twitches, but the look is gone as quick as it appeared.

“Officially, she’s here as a business consultant, of sorts,” Kuroyanagi explains, “But she’s also our guest, and _friend_ ,” He steps closer, skirting the edge of Suwabara’s personal space in an atypical way that in a fellow warrior he would have taken as a threat, a show of dominance. “And I will not tolerate any disrespect. Are we clear?”

Kuroyanagi doesn’t flaunt his position often, but he is Suwabara’s boss. He knows when he’s outranked, and acquiesces with “Understood,” but he’s also a pompous ass, so he continues with a smirk, “I'll do my best.”

Kuroyanagi stares him down for a moment, just long enough to make him uncomfortable, before sighing, “That will have to do.”

This is the conversation Suwabara will recall later as the only warning he gets before his life spirals out of control.

It’s the beginning of the next week. Everyone else has packed up for the day, but as usual Suwabara opts to stay behind until the last minute. He’s trying out some new recipes, and he’s watching closely as the last batch bakes. It’s the longest cooking time of the lot- he set this one to cook first, and the other two experiments went in afterward and already finished. He underestimated the amount of time it would take to get right. He was just starting to worry about the other batches getting cold when the door to the kitchen opens.

Assuming it’s Kuroyanagi, or worse, Matsushiro, here to tell him to get lost, Suwabara looks from the oven to the door plead his case. But it’s not either of his managers, it’s not Kawachi yelling at him to “Get a life, you goddamn workaholic! You’re comin' with us to karaoke/a bar/a sport! Change outta your uniform or you’re wearin' it out!”- it’s a woman.

She assesses him as he assesses her. She’s Caucasian, and she has red hair tied back in two long tails behind her head, but shaggy around her face. Her eyes are a crystal green. He’s never seen those colors in real life before.

“Oh! I’m sorry! I thought everyone was out there already,” she says after a beat, pointing out the door and towards the front of the building. Her voice is on the husky side, and her Japanese is impeccable. “I was just looking for the yummy smell, should I leave?”

He quirks a quizzical brow at her. She followed the smell of his baking, past all the fresh bread out front? Her nose must be impeccable as well. Suwabara surprises himself a little when he says, “No. Why go, when you've found the best bread in the shop, against all odds?” He passes her the tray he’d placed the other two batches on over the island counter between them. “And I have it on good authority that you’re allowed to be here. Help yourself.”

She grins at him and gasps “Really? Yay!” before joyfully taking a piece. “And you're right, I’m Ryo and Shigeru's friend, Monica. But they didn’t even give me food when I got here, so they can go to hell. You’re my friend now.”

Against all odds, Suwabara finds himself amused. He watches as she takes an eager bite.

“MmmMmm!” Monica exclaims, swallowing. “This is awesome. I think you’ve been promoted to best friend status.” She eats some more.

Suwabara can’t help it when a corner of his mouth kicks up. “Obviously you know your stuff. it’s no wonder you were asked to examine the business,” he says.

Monica's eyes twinkle, and when she finishes the pastry she says “You seem to know an awful lot about me, new best friend, but I don’t even know your name.”

He feels unusually sheepish over the faux pas. “Suwabara Kai,” he says without fanfare.

Monica’s face alights with recognition. Of course she would know who he was. When talking Pantasia assets, his name is probably near the top of the list. “The illustrious Kai, huh? They told me about you. A couple of the awards on display out front are yours, too, right?”

He nods. “My reputation precedes me.”

She grabs two more pieces of bread, one in each hand. “That makes these extra special. You’re gonna regret telling me to help myself, especially after almost a day's worth of plane meals.”

“Why would I make food for a living if I didn’t want it to be eaten by the hungry?” Suwabara gives her a ‘go ahead’ gesture, then folds his arms.

Monica grins and chows down, then takes on a thoughtful expression. “It takes a special kind of person to win a baking competition, doesn’t it,” she ponders aloud, “A contrast of competitive and nourishing. Tough and tender.” She slides her eyes to meet his, and something he can’t place shines in their depths. Suddenly, he's not in a fluorescent kitchen in broad daylight, but deep in the woods on a moonless night, and there’s something that can see him much better than he can see it in the dark, and it’s closing in on him.

His breath catches in his chest when she finishes up with, “… Warrior and healer, both.”

His hand goes to the grip of his sword as the door swings open. It’s Kuroyanagi, who looks between the two of them with confusion. He lands on Monica first and says, “What are you doing here? Let’s go home,” and to Suwabara he shouts, “What are you doing here!? Go home!”

Suwabara is sent further back into reality when the oven chimes, but he’s not steady on his feet again yet. _The moonless woods_. He pulls the tray out on autopilot using a cloth to not burn himself. “I was just leaving,” he tells his boss.

The older man just scowls at him for a moment, before turning away with a sigh. “Come on, leave the workaholic alone, there’s no hope for him,” Kuroyanagi says to Monica, “But we can still get you some sleep, jet-lag.” He puts his hand on her head and ruffles the fluffy hair that frames her face, and she laughs. That’s affectionate for him, and Suwabara wonders if they’re lovers. For some reason the thought makes him feel even further off-kilter, even sick.

A coincidence, he thinks. Kuroyanagi is right about his workaholism and recent late nights are catching up to him.

On their way out, Monica turns back to him and gives him a little wave and a small smile that spoke volumes, but in a language he couldn’t read. “Bye, Kai! It was nice meeting you, see you soon!”

He gives her a curt nod in response, and her smile grows.

Suwabara does go to bed early that night. He dreams of a moonless, ancient forest, the canopies of the trees reaching up into eternity, where a predator stalks him in the dark. It’s not a nightmare.

* * *

Monica hates long plane rides. If she could she would have run to Japan. Swam, even. But that would take too long, and Ryo and Shigeru need her there yesterday.

Japan’s shifters are scattered and close to dying out. The few packs left are all secluded families who have kept their bloodlines cut off since the feudal days. But like with all over the world, people’s diets and chemistry have changed in the modern era, and poor folks with dormant and recessive genetics have been waking up after full moons naked in parks with blood and fur in their teeth, having concluded their all-important first hunt on an unsuspecting squirrel.

The thought makes her want to sing a sad song to the sky.

So here Monica stands, 15 hours on a plane later, having been thoughtlessly delivered to the sidewalk outside of her friends’ place of business instead of somewhere with a bed.

Shigeru laughs when she bitches about it. Smug shittiness is a trait the two of them share, so most of the time she’d laugh, too. But she’s tired, and she wants food that doesn’t suck, and something has been psychically niggling at the back of her mind since the plane landed and it feels like someone’s put a dentist's drill in her ear.

So she snaps at Shigeru, “You quit your shitty little giggling right there or I’m gonna crush your skull with my bare hands.”

They quietly level a shit-eating grin at her instead. “Yes, yes, big scary alpha. What big teeth you have, what long claws. I like your luggage.”

Monica shifts the pink fuzzy duffel on her shoulder and hands it to them. “You can carry it, then.”

They sling it over their shoulder easily, smiling still.

Then something strange happens. The dentist’s drill sound fades, and something like the toll of a great bell reverberates loudly in its absence. Werewolves don’t get sick in the same ways people do, but it’s so startling that for just a second Monica thinks _sitting on that plane killed me, this is what a blood vessel bursting in your brain sounds like_ , before realizing it's the sound of her own heart pounding loud and fast in her ears out of nowhere. The world has taken on a kind of crystal clarity, and something is leading her into the bakeshop.

They're trying to close up for the day, and the busy employees don’t notice one stealthy customer sneak past the counters, around a trophy case full of baking awards, into the kitchen. She follows the something. It's not a sound, even though she heard it. It’s not a smell, even though she’s surrounded by delicious scents. It’s something more, something that feels like the pull of the moon, a riptide dragging her through the bowels of the huge corporate kitchen, past open doors and cabinets and tall carts stacked with trays.

Her heart is bursting in her throat and her breathing is rushed when she finally slams open a door at the back, and comes face to face with the powerful something.

Imagine her shock when it’s a man- a human. He’s dressed in the same uniform as Shigeru, but he’s built wider than them and Ryo put together, so it fits him different. He's as surprised to see her as she is to see him- she can scent it along with the out-of-place cold tang of steel- but his expression remains mostly unchanged under the piece of cloth covering the top half of his harsh face. There are trays with bread on them everywhere.

Monica is extremely interested in the man, but her stomach only has eyes for the food.

Monica must have some of the food.

“Oh! I’m sorry! I thought everyone was out there already,” she gestures towards the rest of the shop where everyone else is cleaning, “I was just looking for the yummy smell, should I leave?”

His expression does change then, but she has to imagine his hidden brows rising as his eyes widen. His voice is shockingly deep. “No. Why go, when you've found the best bread in the shop, against all odds?” He’d been watching an oven with crossed arms, but he comes over to the island between them and shoves her a tray with something delicious looking on it, “And I have it on good authority that you’re allowed to be here. Help yourself.”

Monica falls on the food, her smile threatening to split her cheeks. “Really? Yay!” She coos, delight genuine. This guy is a little confusing to her senses. He looks sharp and unforgiving and even his scent is metallic and hard, but there’s a brittleness to that armor that makes her think of a candy shell with a soft center. She wants to know more. “And you're right, I’m Ryo and Shigeru's friend, Monica. But they didn’t even give me food when I got here, so they can go to hell. You’re my friend now.”

The expression on his face is focused as she takes a bite.

“MmmMmm!” Monica moans, honest-to-God holding back an orgasm. Holy shit. “This is awesome. I think you’ve been promoted to best friend status.”

At that one half of his mouth quirks up in a wicked smirk, and this new hair trigger on her sex organs does her no favors there, either. “Obviously you know your stuff. it’s no wonder you were asked to examine the business,” he says in his deep, rumbly voice.

And finally, a clue to his identity. Her Harvard business degree makes great cover for worldwide expeditions, but obviously it’s still better to keep human involvement in shapeshifter affairs to a minimum. Ryo and Shigeru would have kept word of her visit on a need-to-know basis, and that the mystery man knew her cover story was enough to tell her he was part of their inner circle.

When Shigeru had sent her the long packet detailing all the information she would need, a sizeable portion was dedicated to Pantasia, partly because she did actually have a business degree from one of the most prestigious universities in the world and it wouldn’t hurt to look, but most importantly several shifters had appeared amongst their ranks already. Not even including Ryo and Shigeru, who she had taken on their first hunts personally back in the states. She wanted to find out why.

The interesting thing about the company's information was the spreadsheet with significant current ownings such as stocks and property also contained several names. And instead of descriptions with approximated value next to them, there were smaller bulleted lists of awards, competitions, and patents. One of the names was Shigeru’s. Another was confirmed to be another recently changed shifter, the final two human. One of those had to be her mystery man.

Monica had finished the pastry as she was lost in thought, and she lets a little flirtatiousness seep into her words as she says, “You seem to know an awful lot about me, new best friend, but I don’t even know your name.”

He closes his eyes, and she wishes she was close enough to see if his eyelashes are long. She bets they are. “Suwabara Kai,” he states simply.

Shigeru, being Shigeru, had made the document slightly less than professional by personalizing it in their own special way. They had written next to the name Suwabara, _Samurai. Weirdo. Asshat. Saw him feeding the alley cats a few times tho._ “The illustrious Kai, huh? They told me about you. A couple of the awards on display out front are yours, too, right?”

Kai takes on an aloof air, wearing it like a shroud to muffle the glow of pleasure. “My reputation precedes me,” he boasts.

Monica bites her lip to stop a laugh. He is an asshat- kind of a cute one though. Her stomach pangs again and she regrets leaving her bag with Shigeru because she would be filling it right now, though she does take one bread in each hand. “That makes these extra special. You’re gonna regret telling me to help myself, especially after almost a day's worth of plane meals.”

“Why would I make food for a living if I didn’t want it to be eaten by the hungry?” The move Kai makes with his hand to indicate his creation shows off his muscular forearms. Why’s he so jacked? And what did Shigeru mean by samurai in their report?

What a weird guy. She already feels like she’s got him all figured out- in that he would be impossible to try and figure out. Simple but with hidden depths. An enigmatic contradiction. Totally predictable. Monica knows exactly what to say to get his attention. Monica's mind has gone absolutely blank.

It’s like she’s on her first hunt again, barely an adolescent, chasing after dozens of different trails in the dead of night, aimless but frantic.

Until a tantalizing scent draws her whole being, like the pull of the moon.

“It takes a special kind of person to win a baking competition, doesn’t it,” Monica enunciates her carefully chosen words, “A contrast of competitive and nourishing. Tough and tender.”

The she wolf stalks her prey. Her watchful gaze follows him carefully.

“Warrior and healer, both.”

The stricken look that crosses Kai’s face lets her know she has him.

The kitchen door slams open and Monica comes back to her human skin. That’s fine. The hunt is over for today.

It’s Ryo! She hasn’t seen him yet, and as pleased as she is to meet Suwabara Kai, she missed her friend, too.

Ryo looks between the two of them, then fixes Monica with a stare that asks a million questions. The one that ends up out of his mouth is “What are you doing here? Let’s go home.” Then he turns on Kai, glaring at him, and shouts “What are you doing here!? Go home!”

 _Uh-oh, he’s in trouble_ , Monica thinks, stifling another laugh.

Serendipitously, the oven goes off, and Kai pulls out yet another tray of bread. There’s something she finds a little sexy about that motion, too. “I was just leaving,” he grumbles.

Ryo turns back to her, sighs, and rolls his eyes. “Come on, leave the workaholic alone, there’s no hope for him,” he sneers, “But we can still get you some sleep, jet-lag.”

He reaches up and pets her hair. Greeting pack requires touching, and Ryo has always been reserved. She had tackle-hugged Shigeru in the middle of the airport.

Unfortunately, it’s time to leave her mystery man, and as Ryo leads her out, she leaves him with the most human-like goodbye she can come up with, “Bye, Kai! It was nice meeting you, see you soon!”

He gives her a nod and a complicated look as they go.

Monica's even more tired than before, now, and she’s grateful that Ryo leads her outside and into a nice, comfy car. Shigeru is already waiting inside.

“Where were you?” They ask her, bouncing their knee in the spacious luxury interior, annoyed. “We got worried when we couldn’t find you. We thought we lost a pissed-off alpha shapeshifter in the middle of Tokyo.”

She just rolls her eyes as she buckles her seatbelt. Ryo gets comfortable as well and replies in her stead, “I found her hanging out with Suwabara, of all people. Can you believe it?”

Shigeru frowns. “Since when does Suwabara hang out with anyone? Voluntarily, anyway.”

Ryo takes two bottles of water out of a space in the console, hands one to her, and keeps one for himself. “I don’t know. They were even talking. To each other. In regular tones of voice.” He grimaces and takes a drink. “It was disturbing.”

“Go to hell.” Monica says with no bite. She looks at her friends sleepily and, because she just can’t resist stirring up shit, says, “He was flirting with me.”

Ryo chokes on his water.

Shigeru’s laugh is without mirth. “You don’t even know how unbelievable that is. It’s not even funny.”

She ignores them, because Ryo is still coughing, and that’s definitely funny. “Tell me about him,” she sighs, resting her elbow on the car seat back and leaning her head on her hand.

“I know you’re not going to tell me you didn’t read my report,” threatens Shigeru.

“Of course I read it, dummy,” Monica retorts. “I know all I need to know about Suwabara Kai the asset, now tell me about Suwabara Kai the man.”

Ryo and Shigeru share a look. “And why on earth would you want that?” Asks Ryo, voice still cracked from his fit.

She yawns. “Don’t worry, he'll be asking after me, too.”

Shigeru glares at her. “I'm sure he won't, but do tell, how could you possibly know that?”

Monica slowly closes her eyes and smiles a blissful smile. Such a shit stirrer. “Because he’s my mate.”


	2. Don't Shoot the Messenger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS CHAPTER IS LESS LOOKED OVER THAN THE FIRST ONE.... if you see any mistakes please don't hesitate to let me know!!

Kuroyanagi was allowed no relief from his watery woes, as he coughed and sputtered his next sip all over himself.

Shigeru patently ignores him and says to Monica, “I'm telling you. That’s not funny. Stop.”

“I’m glad it’s not funny, because it’s not a joke.” Monica bites. She’s too tired to have a romantic conversation with these two stick-in-the-mud cynics. “God or the universe or the moon or whatever picked him for me, and we're gonna fall in love and be together forever and all that sappy crap you hate. Deal.”

“That’s an old wives’ tale!” They hiss, “Soul mates, love at first sight- it’s a fairy tale, it's fiction, it’s _not real_ -“

“ _You’re a fucking werewolf!_ ”

“Yes; the distinction being that one of those can now be explained by science! Aren't you just looking for an excuse to hit on our coworker while you’re supposed to be working?”

“Stop,” Ryo rasps, “I’m going to have a heart attack if you don’t stop,” he coughs some more, face turning an unhealthy color.

Monica, to which anger is better than caffeine, sits up straight and spits at Shigeru, “You think I’d try and get permission from you for that? If I wanted to blow off steam I could have made the rounds to all your employees and you’d never know.” But she is exhausted still, and not quite stable, so her lower lip quivers as she says “Something really scary and life changing happened to me, and all you want to do is tell me I'm stupid for being affected by it. Fuck you, Kanmuri.”

Shigeru grimaces, and, in an act of apologetic deference, bows their head. “You’re right. I didn’t mean to make you feel that way. I simply don’t understand,” they apologize. Monica knows they don’t like to have unanswered questions, it’s part of what makes them such a good researcher, after all. “What happened? Why do you feel so strongly about Suwabara, of all people? A human, at that?”

Ryo, still intermittently coughing, looked on with interest.

Monica turned inward at the question. If she sought out the pulling feeling she had so strongly before, it was still there, just… quieter. It was taught, but light now, like wrapping paper on a present. It felt brand new, but also like it had always been there. Maybe it had?

“I don’t know why,” she answers truthfully, after a pause, “But we're definitely bound together somehow, I can feel it.” Wrinkling her nose, she adds, “It’s weird, but kinda nice, too.”

Ryo hums and crosses his arms, thoughtful. His voice is still a little rough. “I can’t claim to understand any of the foibles that come with being an unnaturally powerful shapeshifter,” he contemplates, “However, if you plan on earnestly pursuing my employee, you have my approval, for now. What would you like to know?”

Monica relaxes against the car seat again. She pictures Kai in her mind’s eye. Harsh, with lots of sharp angles, like he’s been carved with an axe out of wood. Broad, powerful shoulders, strong tapered waist. She didn’t get to see his legs or his butt around the kitchen island- a big disappointment. Piercing eyes. Even his coloring is severe, bronze, sunny skin and hair so jet-black it’s purple. Handsome. “Do you have any pictures of him?” She answers Ryo’s question with another question.

Shigeru laughs like she told a joke. Ryo's mouth gets tight at the corners. “He's not exactly the selfie type,” he says. “No social media, either. When we try to get him in group photos he runs away. I think a photographer for a magazine managed to take one once, but that was years ago.”

Monica grins unexpectedly. What a weirdo. “I’ll just have to take some of my own, then. What’s he like, just in general? Other than a cocky asshole.”

“You hit the nail on the head- there’s not much else.” Shigeru chuckles.

Ryo waves a dismissive hand, “Don’t listen to them, he used to be even worse. Azuma humbled him a lot. He's practically chill now.”

“You’re kidding. That’s incredible,” Even more sure of himself. He would have been insufferable. She tried to imagine it and couldn't. “Okay, then. Tell me more. Why is he so buff? How does a baker get ripped like that?”

He and Shigeru look at each other again. He asks “Did you not put that in your report?”

“Of course I did! Monica! You said you read it!”

Monica raises one eyebrow at the both of them. “You’re gonna have to connect the dots for me, guys. Brain running on fumes, here.”

“Baking is not technically Suwabara’s first profession,” states Ryo, “He retired once already after he couldn't possibly improve any further and took up a pursuit that challenged him, instead. Or so he’s told me.”

Genuinely surprised, Monica says “He’s our age. What could he have been good enough at to retire from?”

“Killing people,” Shigeru chirps with a smile.

“God dammit, I knew there had to be a catch. The cute ones are always gay or serial killers.” Monica rolls her eyes.

“I hate you both. I wish you’d take anything seriously.”

“Well I wish you’d stop talking around things, you purple-prose ass-“

“He's a master samurai, just like I wrote in my report. Has the paperwork and everything,” Shigeru finally explains, “Or did you not take the opportunity to ask to see his ‘sword’?” The final word had as much innuendo sunk into it as possible. “Monica, I’m disappointed. That’s not like you.”

Monica’s jaw drops. “That’s what that metal smell was! You can’t tell me things like your one true love are fairy tales when you have a guy that brings a sword to work on your payroll!”

“Samurai were real- are real! I know that _because I work with one_!“

“So were knights in armor, a fairy tale staple. Checkmate.”

They bicker like that in their amicable way until they arrive at Monica's hotel and bundle her into the penthouse for some well-deserved rest.

* * *

Monica's prediction comes true even sooner than Kuroyanagi had expected.

Suwabara finds him early the next day, in fact. Asks him straight out, “Tell me about her.” And says nothing else.

Kuroyanagi doesn’t hide his surprise, pausing in his paperwork. “Oh? About who?”

“Don’t be an idiot.” Suwabara growls. He doesn’t like it when Ryo talks around things either. It’s why he does it.

Ryo isn’t always confident when it comes to his own relationships, but he’s always found being wingman easy. Embarrassing others comes naturally, but dealing with his own feelings? Another story entirely. He's also typically patient with Suwabara, but today he'll take the rare chance to pick on his most unflappable employee. He lifts one corner of his mouth at the younger man. The hunt is on. “How funny. Monica wanted nothing more than to talk about you, as well. You’ve caught her interest in a big way. Can the same be said for you?”

Suwabara's eyes widen and his cheeks darken. Ryo knows where his weaknesses lay, unlike Monica, and he doesn’t play with his prey like she does, either. He goes straight for the jugular as soon as the opportunity presents.

“Obviously she would be interested in me, I’m one of the best bakers in Japan,” Suwabara says after a beat, shrugging off what should have been a death blow to a normal person like it was nothing, “Your schoolmate has yet to prove more than someone with good taste, and there are plenty of people like that in the world.”

Ryo scowls. He also knows the man is as stubborn as a mule with hide twice as thick. He'll have to bring the fangs and claws out. “If that’s the case, why would you want to know more about her?”

Suwabara draws back like he’s been struck, then. His cheeks pink again. “I-I simply want to know if her critiques hold any weight,” he’s beginning to get flustered, Ryo has him on the defensive now.

Ryo decides to play along to lull him into a false sense of security. “Well I suppose that’s as good a reason as any,” he flips one last time through what he’s written down on paper; he’ll have to put it all in the computer later, but it’s worth it not to have to lug around a tablet in a heavy kitchen-mess-proof case all day. He puts his pen behind his ear and sets his clipboard down. “Let me see. Where to start on Monica? Obviously, we met in the states, at Harvard. I was actually friends with her before Kanmuri- I introduced the two of them. She was in a similar food science course to ours, and our classes often worked together. That’s where we met.”

“You're telling me that woman has a food science degree from Harvard!? And this wasn’t important for me to know before she got here?” Suwabara sneers at him, agitated.

“You care about people other than yourself? And that wasn’t important for me to know before we had this conversation?”

Suwabara grimaces, chastened. “I… care. About… people.”

Ryo raises a single brow at him. “People who work here and made you care with much perseverance don’t count.”

Suwabara opens his mouth and Ryo interrupts him, “Your master doesn’t count either.” He closes it with a click of his teeth.

Ryo sighs and shakes his head. “Food science is her minor. Her major is some kind of complicated business degree. Kanmuri knows the specifics better than I do.”

“So, just as I expected, a rich brat just playing at our world, then?” Suwabara sighs in return, sounding disheartened.

A little fire ignites behind Ryo's breastbone as his anger begins to flare. It’s instinct to protect one's alpha, but at this point he’s just pissed off at his friend for being obtuse. He bares his teeth, literally and figuratively. “What are you doing, Suwabara? Have you really come to me looking for information about a dear friend for, what- ammunition to insult her with? What is the purpose of this conversation? She spoke highly of you- for some ungodly reason- after your brief meeting. It will disappoint her to hear that you’ve already jumped to conclusions and think of her as a spoiled child for no reason.”

Suwabara blinks at him, mouth agape, for once cowed. “I, that’s not what I… I didn't-“

“- and just for your information,” Ryo continues, having waited to interrupt him, “Monica Adenauer grew up poor as dirt in Germany and had a rough upbringing until a turn of good luck changed her life. Her parents are both bakers, which is why she loves pastry. She’s won a couple awards for her sweets. Not that you care, right? Mr. High-and-mighty? You know everything there is to know about her already.”

“Stop!” Suwabara croaks, and it sounds like the life has been choked out of him. He slaps his palms flat on his kitchen island, shaking his empty measuring utensils. The clattering plastic is loud in the suddenly quiet room. “I’m sorry, I was wrong, just stop,” he says, more stable this time.

It’s Ryo's turn to be shocked. He doesn’t think he’s ever heard Suwabara admit fault in broad daylight, sober, and not crying in the bar bathroom like a girl getting drunk for the first time. “As long as you know.” He says, not quite stable himself, suddenly.

Two of his best friends are changing drastically, rapidly. Right before his eyes. What the fuck. He surreptitiously takes a piece of paper from his clipboard and turns it around. He'll use the blank side for notes, Kanmuri will want to know about this. He writes _agreeable???_ and about a hundred more question marks under Suwabara’s name.

It’s silent like that for a while. Silent as it can be in an industrial kitchen with the hum and whirr of huge appliances.

Apparently there has been a long and hard internal battle that Ryo has not been privy to, as the next thing Suwabara says is, “I’ve never felt this way before. I don’t know what to do.”

Ryo looks up from his notes, stunned. By the vulnerability, by turning to _him_ of all people- though he supposes he is convenient. He’s a little honored- and a little weirded out, maybe. He writes a couple more things and puts the clipboard down again.

“If it’s any consolation,” he says, laying a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder, “That’s about what Monica said, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea how often this will be updated lol

**Author's Note:**

> I am here for self-indulgence only, so if you're reading this and you say to yourself "I would love it if THIS thing would happen" tell me that thing just do it I want to know. Maybe I'll try to work it in I dunno but I still want to know.


End file.
